'Dumb' and 'lazy' - Trump lashes back at Tillerson criticism

Updated
9:09 pm EST, Tuesday, December 11, 2018

President Donald Trump called former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "dumb as a rock," likely in response to criticism Tillerson made of Trump in an interview with CBS's Bob Schieffer in Houston on Thursday, Dec. 6, 2018. The two are seen in this file photo from 2017. less

President Donald Trump called former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "dumb as a rock," likely in response to criticism Tillerson made of Trump in an interview with CBS's Bob Schieffer in Houston on Thursday, ... more

Photo: Washington Post Photo By Jabin Botsford.

Photo: Washington Post Photo By Jabin Botsford.

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President Donald Trump called former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "dumb as a rock," likely in response to criticism Tillerson made of Trump in an interview with CBS's Bob Schieffer in Houston on Thursday, Dec. 6, 2018. The two are seen in this file photo from 2017. less

President Donald Trump called former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson "dumb as a rock," likely in response to criticism Tillerson made of Trump in an interview with CBS's Bob Schieffer in Houston on Thursday, ... more

Photo: Washington Post Photo By Jabin Botsford.

'Dumb' and 'lazy' - Trump lashes back at Tillerson criticism

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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump, never known for taking criticism lying down, responded to unkind words from his former secretary of state Rex Tillerson on Friday by calling Tillerson "dumb as a rock" and "lazy as hell."

During a rare public appearance in Houston on Thursday evening, Tillerson, the former Exxon Mobil CEO, discussed his difficult tenure working for Trump. He called the president "undisciplined" and said the president "doesn't like to read, doesn't read briefing reports, doesn't like to get into the details of a lot of things."

Tillerson also said Trump frequently asked him to do things that he had to explain were illegal or otherwise ill-advised.